Once Upon a Time Affair - Hiatus

[jantojones.livejournal.com]

Although the Once Upon a Time affair is on hiatus for new prompts until September, I'm going to post a reminder of all the previous prompts every couple of weeks or so. If the muse moves you, chose any of the prompts and get writing. Just remember to give the date of the original prompt.

You'll find them all under the cut, with the rules at the bottom.


12th November 2017

The day was cold and crisp, with the clouds overhead threatening a heavy snowfall. For one of two the figures on the, otherwise empty cliff top, the chill of winter no longer held any discomfort. It never would again.

Theme - Thankfulness

26th November 2017

{Your Choice} had a spring in her step as she walked through the staff entrance of U.N.C.L.E. New York. To the envy of her colleagues in the secretarial pool, she had been promoted to the job of personal assistant to Mr Solo and Mr Kuryakin.

Theme - Fear

10th December 2017

“Peace and goodwill,” {your choice of UNCLE agent} muttered to {himself/herself} as {he/she} trudged through the snow. “There will be none of either when I get back.”

Theme - Christmas

24th December 2017

The fireworks, which heralded the arrival of 1965, were spectacular, but {your choice of UNCLE agent} had no interest them. The hope of the new year had been superseded by the hope of survival.

Theme - Renewal

14th January 2018

It was the morning after a night of torrid passion and Napoleon Solo awoke to the hope of an encore before work. Turning over, he found that his date was no longer with him, and the only evidence she’d been there at all was an envelope on the pillow. Solo quickly opened it, expecting a note full of thanks, and a promise of future fun. Instead, the contents of the note caused the colour to drain from his face.

Theme - Revenge

28th January 2018

With the confidence of any wealthy international jet-setter, Napoleon Solo strode into the lobby of the Monte Carlo {your choice of resort name} resort. Behind him, struggling under the weight of four suitcases was his partner, who was in the guise of his personal valet.

Theme - Envy

11th February 2018

{Your Choice} held his breath as the ball bounced around the spinning roulette wheel. Ordinarily he would be hoping for the ball to settle on his chosen number but, this time, he didn’t want the wheel to stop spinning at all.

Theme - Hope

25th February 2018

It was supposed to have been a simple milk run. All he’d had to do was place the package in the designated location, and then leave. As he sat in the back of the truck, with his hands cuffed behind him, and his broken nose throbbing, {Napoleon or Illya} began to wonder if it wasn’t time to get out of the spy game.

Theme - Melancholy

11th March 2018

Almost twenty-four hours had passed since the Thrush plane had crashed, deep in the jungle, and of the four people aboard only two had survived. The pilots were both killed on impact, leaving Thrush agent {your choice}, and captured U.N.C.L.E. agent {your choice}.

No Theme

8th April 2018

Something felt wrong, but {your choice} couldn't quite pinpoint what it was. {He/she} had no real reason to feel such a sense of disquiet, yet {he/she} couldn't seem shake it.

Theme - Unease

22nd April 2018

Illya Kuryakin and Napoleon Solo were often told they were meant to be enemies, but neither man was accepting of being told what to think.

Theme - Contrasts

13th May 2018

{Your Choice} had waited many years for this day to come and, finally, {he/she} would get the recompense {he/she} had craved for so long.

Theme - Revenge

10th June 2019

When {Your Choice} had woken up that morning {he/she} could never have imagined how the day would end. {He/she} had heard of U.N.C.L.E. but hadn't had any real idea of what it was they did. In only a few ours {he/she} had learned far more than the average civilian.

No theme

8th July 2018

"You understand that there must be no record of anything pertaining to this assignment," Alexander Waverly stated. "I have authorised for you to acquisition any equipment you may need, but once you leave this building you must not make contact, in any way, until the assignment is completed. As such, you will have no access to records or, more importantly, no access to any back-up. Good luck, gentlemen."

No Theme

12th August 2018

One of the biggest nuisances within the espionage game was the over-reliance on anonymous information. The problem was that an agent had no way of knowing whether the intel was genuine, or if it was the bait in a trap.

Theme - Disagreement

9th September 2018

Since joining U.N.C.L.E. there had been one, ever present certainty for {Napoleon Solo/Illya Kuryakin}. He had always known, and long since accepted, that his life would end prematurely.

Theme- Sacrifice

14th October 2018

After weeks of planning, and setting up, it was finally time to put the operation into action. It was just a pity {your choice} had failed to make allowance for the supernatural.

Theme - Spooky / Creepy

11th November 2018

"The choice is yours, {Solo/Kuryakin}" stated the agent's latest captor. "Either you kill your partner quickly, or I kill him slowly. I'll give you both five minutes to talk it over."

Theme - Thankfulness

9th December 2018

{Napoleon/Illya} tucked his communicator away with a deep sense of regret. He hadn't wanted to lie to his partner, but he also hadn't wanted to spoil the festivities.

Theme - Endings and/or beginnings

13th January 2019

A cold wind swirled around the street, causing the hunched figure of {your choice} to pull {his/her} collar up against the chill. A snowstorm had been forecast, but it couldn’t be allowed to interfere with the mission at hand. It was absolutely imperative for {your choice} to be dead by midnight.

No Theme

10th February 2019

In his job, {Napoleon/Illya} had seen the worst that humanity had to offer, and yet, even he was appalled at what his and {Napoleon/Illya}’s current assignment had led them to.

No Theme

10th March 2019

Illya Kuryakin had often prophesied that his partner's wandering eye would lead to trouble for someone. That prophecy had finally come true for {your choice}.

No Theme

14th April 2019

April Dancer was the first woman to attain the position of a Section 2 agent with U.N.C.L.E. For most people this was an event to be celebrated. However, for {your choice}, it was an aberration which needed to be corrected before it could be fully established.

No Theme


Challenge Rules Below

Challenge Rules

-Your story must begin with the exact prompt sentence /paragraph.
Occasionally, there will be customisable parts within the prompt. These will be written in red.

For example –

{Your Choice} means you can decide which character to place there. (It may not necessarily be any of the main characters.)

{His/her} can be changed to reflect the gender of your chosen character.

{Name of Place} means you can chose where your story is set.

-The story must be rooted in the Man from U.N.C.L.E. universe and reflect the time in which it is set.

-Stories can be posted on any day from the prompt day to the last day of posting (inclusive).

-Word Count – Minimum 500, with no maximum.

-All stories should be headed with, Your title - ‘The Once Upon a Time Affair’ - the date.

-Tags - please use once upon a time, gen, or gen-mature.

-Section VII is a Gen community, so stories should be appropriate, i.e. nothing explicit or overly-graphic. However, there is the Gen-Mature tag for anything containing violence, torture or mild Het. The Map Room should be used for Het stories, but again, nothing overly graphic.

-Also, as a courtesy to others, please use the LJ Cut, so as not to take up too much room on someone’s feed.